Milad, Nadia, Fantauzzi, Matthew F, McGrath, Joshua J C, Cass, Steven P, Thayaparan, Danya, Wang, Peiyao, Afkhami, Sam, Aguiar, Jennifer A, Ask, Kjetil, Doxey, Andrew C, Stampfli, Martin R and Hirota, Jeremy A (2023) Cannabis smoke suppresses antiviral immune responses to influenza A in mice. ERJ open research, 9 (6). ISSN 2312-0541

Abstract

RATIONALE

Despite its increasingly widespread use, little is known about the impact of cannabis smoking on the response to viral infections like influenza A virus (IAV). Many assume that cannabis smoking will disrupt antiviral responses in a manner similar to cigarette smoking; however, since cannabinoids exhibit anti-inflammatory effects, cannabis smoke exposure may impact viral infection in distinct ways.

METHODS

Male and female BALB/c mice were exposed daily to cannabis smoke and concurrently intranasally instilled with IAV. Viral burden, inflammatory mediator levels (multiplex ELISA), lung immune cells populations (flow cytometry) and gene expression patterns (RNA sequencing) were assessed in the lungs. Plasma IAV-specific antibodies were measured ELISA.

RESULTS

We found that cannabis smoke exposure increased pulmonary viral burden while decreasing total leukocytes, including macrophages, monocytes and dendritic cell populations in the lungs. Furthermore, infection-induced upregulation of certain in

Item Type:	Article
Date Deposited:	28 Dec 2024 00:45
Last Modified:	28 Dec 2024 00:45
URI:	https://oak.novartis.com/id/eprint/56183